Trump's 's**thole' remarks racist: UN human rights office

Geneva, Jan 12 : The UN's human rights office on Friday said derogatory remarks made by US President Donald Trump regarding the nations of El Salvador and Haiti were "racist".

Rupert Colville, a spokesperson for the United Nation High Commissioner for Human Rights, condemned Trump's characterisation of the two countries as "s**tholes" during a meeting on Thursday with lawmakers on a bipartisan immigration deal, Efe news agency reported.

"These comments by the President of the US are surprising and shameful," Colville said. "I'm sorry, but they cannot be defined as anything other than racist."

According to people present in the Oval Office meeting, Trump was frustrated that migrants from El Salvador, Haiti and certain African countries were allowed into the US.

"Why are we having all these people from s**thole countries come here," he asked.

Trump then proposed that the US instead welcome more people from places such as Norway and singled out Haiti.